From afar
by Runners
Summary: Raimundo'd had feelings for Kimiko since he could remember, but he thought it would be better for all of them if he stayed away and watched her from afar.


He watched her from afar. She was stunning in every way he could think of. She was fierce during the fight, she was stubborn while she bargained, she always had witty comebacks, a temper of fire, a beauty of a princess.

So of course, he looked - how could he not? A masterpiece like her should be acknowledged by everyone who saw her.

And, though, he knew he couldn't, he yearned to tell her. He was desperate to play with her hair as the soft breeze made it bounce. He wanted to feel her warmth as he held her hand. He had to stop himself from kissing her everytime they were alone.

But this was Kimiko for Dashi's sake. Kimiko - his best friend! He couldn't remember the time he wasn't absolutely head over heels in love with her. Despite himself, this feeling only grew day by day.

Raimundo tried looking for her flaws - and boy did he find any - but somehow he loved her even more for them. He noticed how when she was nervous she would scratch the skin around her fingernails making herself bleed from time to time. He heard her tiptoe while listening to music when she couldn't sleep at night. Sometimes when she would laugh - he noticed that - she would spit a bit. She would blush lightly but thinking no one noticed she would let the embarrassment slide.

Raimundo didn't mind those things; after all, they made Kimiko... well Kimiko.

He loved getting under her skin - muscles in her shoulders would tense, she would fist her hands, sparks burning in her blue eyes. And then he'd make her tea or go watch sundown with her.

Those little moments made him believe she could feel something more than friendship towards him. It seemed silly, but he noticed how she would blush whenever their hands accidentally touched. Sometimes he would overhear - yes, overhear because he was no longer eavesdropping on her okay? - her rumble to Keiko about him - or at least he hoped it was about him.

No one ever confronted him about his feelings - well, except Clay, but it's not like the cowboy was helpful. He expected Master Fung to notice sooner or later - and perhaps he did - but he never talked to Raimundo about it, and the boy figured as a Shoku Warrior he had brains to figure the matters out on his own.

And he came to the conclusion that even if Kimiko felt the same way as he did, they should never act on it. There were just too many reasons, like him being a leader and as one he should keep his head in the game instead of worrying about such silly things or their enemies using their feelings against them. And don't even get him started on what would have happened had they broken up.

Good thing Rai knew how to keep his feelings in check - he'd been doing that for years, after all.

The one time he was actually confronted about the matter - calling it a confrontation might be an exaggeration - was when Master Monk Guan and he decided to fool Hannibal Roy Bean together. They had it all planned, every little detail when Guan spoke up,

 _"You're going to have to fight them too," he warned._

 _"I know." Raimundo gritted his teeth. It wouldn't be the first time, and it would be fake - though they weren't going to know that. Just imagining their hurt expressions hurt like taking a hit in the gut. Raimundo just hoped his friends would understand._

 _"You might even have to hurt them." Rai could only nod, with his stare focused on the table between them. "Don't worry, I won't let you get close to Kimiko." Guan sounded as if he winked after saying that, but it wasn't on top of the list of Rai's concerns._

 _His eyes abruptly met Master's in shock._

 _"Wha-" But he never finished that sentence as it died on his tongue. Guan knew - there was no denying it. Raimundo felt his face grow hot and if he blushed - oh if he blushed he swore on Dashi's grave he'd-_

 _But Guan only smiled knowingly, turned around and left with his hands linked behind his back._

 _"Rest, young dragon." He turned his head to get one last look at his new student. "You'll need it." With that, he was gone, and Raimundo was left alone to mess his hair up with his shaking hands and red face._

 _And as the next day began so did his new mission. He felt shiver ran down his spine when he made the deal with the bean - he'd never thought he would compromise with Heylin ever again, at least this time it was all fake. What wasn't fake was Kimiko's utter shock and hurt as her eyes watered when she looked at him. And he could only hope this torture would end soon._

 _As promised Guan stepped in before Raimundo could even lay a finger on Kimiko - not that he ever would._

 _When everything was over - Omi was patched up, and the rest of them headed to bed Kimiko stopped Raimundo by taking his hand. When he turned to her, her head hung low as if hiding from him._

 _"Kim-"_

 _"I'm sorry," she interrupted him, her voice a faint whisper that barely reached his ears._

 _"Wha- why?" He shook his head in disbelieve. WHY WOULD SHE -_

 _"You did good, and... I'm proud of you."_

 _"Doesn't explain why you'd be sorry, girl," he snickered, trying to get her to look at him - he found it hard to believe anyone when they wouldn't even look at him._

 _"I'm sorry I doubted you. I really..." she sobbed, and his heart broke at the sound. "I really thought you joined Heylin again," she continued, having regained control over her voice. She glanced at him with those sapphire blue eyes with such regret and shame like she didn't believe she was worthy of looking at him - when he knew it was the other way around._

 _With one swift movement, he brought her closer. "I'd doubt me too," he confessed, his lips against the top of her head._

 _It took a moment for her arms to wrap themselves around him. But when they did, they stayed there for a while just breathing each other scents, enjoying the comfort._

 _"Wanna play Goo Zombies?" he asked out of nowhere. Kimiko looked up at him confused._

 _"Aren't you tired?"_

 _"Tired? I just beat up Omi, I've never felt more alive!" he chuckled._

Raimundo left before Kimiko would have a chance to see him - he really didn't want to get beat up himself.

He, once again, wandered back to the time when he wasn't Shoku warrior yet. A picture of Kimiko and him at the cinema - or rather a cinema in his head. Surely, Hannibal knew of his feelings - why he hadn't used that knowledge against Rai remained a mystery. Hopefully, he was too dumb to notice. After all, it'd been a while since the whole nightmare thingy.

Chase Young was probably too busy to admire Omi and think of a way to get a cheese ball on his side to bother even looking at the two of them.

Though it infuriated Rai how Chase casually breathed in and commented on her perfume - it didn't matter that he thought it was Jack, or did he?

"Stop it," he murmured to himself. It didn't matter - or at least it shouldn't.

"Is something troubling you, Raimundo?" He almost jumped at the sound of Master Fung's voice.

"Uh, no." Had he not hesitated Fung might have believed him.

"Come with me."

 _Just great_ \- Rai thought, but followed nonetheless. They stayed in silence for a long time as Raimundo followed him. None of them spoke up while Fung was making one of his most special teas nor when he poured it into the cups. Instead of giving one to Rai, he took out a straight piece of wood and something in shape of a cylinder. He placed the plank above the cylinder and adroitly placed both cups on the ends of it.

"As a leader, you aim for perfection, but when the balance is ruined," he said and started pouring more tea into one cup until the whole construction collapsed, "Everything is ruined."

"You lost me, Master."

Rai didn't have the problem with the metaphor itself, but the purpose of it seemed to miss a point.

"Raimundo, good and evil balance each other." The boy nodded numbly, trying to understand the meaning of the lecture.

Fung took out another two cups not caring for the mess he previously made. He filled one with hot liquid that Raimundo started doubting he would get a taste of.

"When you train and focus you add to the good, but when you plot you add to the evil." He started filling another one. "But when you overthink you add even more." When Fung wouldn't stop pouring the tea once again it slopped.

Raimundo's face must have been just as puzzled as before because Master Fung sighed heavily, closed his eyes, inhaled, and then explained,

"Things that have to or should be done are never overthought - you just know you have to do them, but in any other case... let's just say, if you spend too much time thinking over something it means you are not sure if this is right or wrong. Usually the evil tips the scale."

"Oh..." So, his feelings were evil now? UGH - he mentally groaned.

"So, you've known all this time?"

"I have indeed."

Raimundo nodded, his gaze fixated on the table. He understood now.

"No, you do not."

"Huh?" Raimundo realized he must have spoken out loud.

"Your feelings are not evil, Raimundo. Overthinking them is."

"So... You're giving me a blessing of some kind?"

"Some kind," Master Fung hummed with a smile as if he had just heard an amusing story.

"So..."

"I suppose Kimiko might still be in the garden," he announced as he lifted the only properly filled cup to his mouth.

"Oh... Oh!" Raimundo shook his head in disbelief. "So... You want me to-"

"To learn to start a sentence with a word different from so."

"Ugh!" That really was not the time for teasing. "But... why did you wait so long to talk to me about this?"

"You know you could have come yourself, don't you?" Raimundo scratched his neck nervously, because yes he could and probably should have done that.

"Yeah..." he said in a way too squeaky voice to sound believable. "So should I go or..." he trailed off nervously.

"I thought I told you overthinking was evil."

"Right..." Raimundo clumsily left the room and headed for the garden. What would he even say when he found her, he had no idea. He'd never had problems talking to girls, getting a date, kissing, but then he was never in love before. Kimiko was not only his best friend and partner but also the first girl Rai truly fell for.

After what Master Fung told him he assumed she felt the same way - after all, why push Rai to confess his feelings if Fung wasn't certain Kimiko reciprocated them - unless he and Dojo had some kind of a ridiculous bet going on.

Raimundo groaned. He'd much rather fight Heylin all day long than deal with the matter.

"Everything all right, Rai?" Kimiko asked him with a raised eyebrow. He didn't even realize he entered the garden already. His palms were trembling, so he clenched them and felt how sweaty they'd become.

"Kimi... Ugh for Dashi's sake," he murmured unable to form any coherent thought not to mention a sentence. So, instead of saying anything he brushed the strand of her from her cheek, and his hand lingered on her cheek. When she didn't protest, he pulled her closer and kissed her.

It was slow and at first uncertain until Rai felt her lips move against his. With his hand on her cheek, the other one swiftly grabbed her waist.

"Now? Really, kiddos?" They pulled away after hearing Dojo's squeak.

"What the hell, gecko?" Rai asked still holding onto Kimiko. But the dragon ignored the insult and went on rumbling,

"Now I gotta pay!"

"Dojo, what are you talking about?" Kimi laughed at him.

"The bet!"

"Bet?" She raised an eyebrow and quickly glanced at Raimundo.

"Ay, don't look at me! I have no idea what the gecko is up to!"

"Gecko?!"

"What all the fuss about? It's louder here than in barn during calf's birth!" Came Clay's voice as he, Omi and Master Fung entered the garden.

"Master Fung won the bet!" Dojo announced.

"Time to pay up, young ones."

"Can anyone clue as in?"Raimundo asked quite confused.

"Partner, we had this bet goin' on for literally years - when would you and lass make it official. I only want to know why now of all time?!"

"I am sure it because of a mysterious thing called destination."

"You mean destiny, Omi?" At this point Raimundo put two and two together, "Is this why you wanted to have this chat with me, master?"

"Indeed, Raimundo, I raised the stakes three times for it to happen this week and I wasn't going to lose," Fung grinned.

"Woah, wait a second," Kimiko started, anger already clear on her expression, "We were just a bet to you?" Her tone brought sudden suspense among them that made Clay swallow loudly.

Soon he, Omi, and Dojo were running away from her and the fireballs she was throwing at them. She, of course, didn't dare to even glare at Master Fung.

"You could at least give me fifty percent of that money." Rai raised an eyebrow expectingly.

"What do you need money for if you already have everything?" With a content smile, he walked off, leaving Raimundo to glance at his friends and chuckle.

"That I do," he mumbled before he used his Shoku powers to join his friends in a fight.


End file.
